Russian tennis superstar Maria Sharapova took time out to speak to the press after a practice session for the Russia-Spain Fed Cup tie. Incidentally, for those who don’t follow Masha closely, the correct pronunciation of her name has the accent on the second syllable (Sha-RA-po-va), not the third syllable (Sha-ra-PO-va), so the pronunciation by the commentator in this video is correct. However, Masha understands that a lot of people pronounce her name the incorrect way and doesn’t have a problem with it, even introducing herself to non-Russian speakers as Sha-ra-PO-va.

Masha leads a strong Russian Fed Cup team that includes Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova and Ekaterina Makarova. Adding to the advantage for Team Russia is that the match will take place in Olympic Stadium in Moscow. Play begins February 4th. Russia leads Spain 5 to 1 in head-to-head Fed Cup meetings.